Finding a Place in Her Heart
by Daughter of Inis
Summary: A short story on Eowyn and Faramir. Eowyn is still pining for Aragorn, but then Faramir comes into the picture.
1. Chapter 1

Finding a Place in Her Heart

She huddled on the corner of her bed, leaning against the wall by the window. She watched as the last few lights went out in the houses below, the city was sleeping now. The stars were still veiled and this brought back to her the reminder of why she was there. She looked down at her bandaged arm and frowned. But then the memory of the hands that had bandaged that arm came back to her. The rough, callused, but remarkably gentle hands that had so carefully drawn her back from death's door. She inhaled deeply and then sighed heavily. The smell of Athelas wafted around her, sweet and pungent, but it only brought back memories of him. He was out there, she thought, marching towards Mordor and possibly death. Nay, she dared not think of that. For she still loved him. His healing of her had only rekindled the love for him that she had so desperately tried to snuff out. 'How foolish I was', she thought sadly, 'going off to war like a mad woman. I thought I had more sense than that.' She hugged her knees to her chest and looked about the quiet room. All lay sleeping. All but her.

Suddenly there was a soft footfall behind her. She turned to see Faramir. The young man whose bed was just a few away from hers. She drew the blankets about her and looked up at him.

"My Lord?" she inquired, not knowing what he wanted.

"What troubles you my lady?" he said in a soft voice. This startled her. How could he know the plights that lay upon her heart?

"Nothing, my lord, I just can't seem to sleep."

"Sleep is elusive to me also." He murmured. She frowned and wished he would go away and leave her be, but he made no sign of leaving rather he stepped closer to the bed. "Do you worry for the army? Your brother?" he said slowly. Her brother, now she felt guilty. She had been so concerned with Aragorn that she had totally missed the fact that her brother was riding with him.

"Yes." She said softly, and he nodded.

"You are fortunate that you still have your brother." She turned to look at him and stared up into the deep blue eyes that searched her own.

"I am sorry my Lord."

"It's all right. How is your wound?" he gestured, changing the subject.

"It is healing, but is still is not wholly well. And yours?" she said looking at bandaged arm.

"It is mending." They were silent for a while, and she studied him closely. Tall and broad-shouldered he stood. A clean-shaven face and raven locks finished him. For the first time, she began to notice how handsome he was. She finally turned back to the window and looked up at the now sinisterly black sky, fringed with red to the east.

"Do not worry. I'm sure Lord Aragorn will return safely." He ventured quietly. She gaped at him, how did he know of her love for Aragorn? She tried to say something, but words did not come. She sat there stunned. "I heard you murmur his name in your sleep." He said quietly, smiling a little. Finally she found her voice.

"Does that mean I care for him?" she sneered. She felt he was teasing her about it. She was a shield maiden, not a child. "If you think so my lord. You are mistaken." She tried to sound defiant, but she knew her voice betrayed too much of her emotion.

"Then who do you care for my Lady?"

"None but my people, and my brother."

"That is a pity for you would make a wonderful wife for a fortunate man." This made her stop and think. There was something in his voice that hinted at suggestion, but she ignored it. For she wished this troublesome man to be gone. He on the otherhand, could tell that she was not as feisty as she let on, and sensed the emotion hidden behind her words

"Goodnight my Lord." She said determinedly, sliding back under her coverlet.

"Goodnight Lady Eowyn." He murmured, before walking away. Eowyn lay puzzled in the dark. Did he care for her? For she felt the slightest twinge of affection as he walked away. Little did she realize that Aragorn was slipping from her mind, and that Faramir was finding his place within her heart.


	2. Chapter 2

The Skylark brings me light…

The next several days, Eowyn saw little of Faramir. She spent her time in the gardens of Minas Tirith, letting the cool mountain air refresh her lungs. She had become very restless the past few days, wishing to be in Rohan again, far away from this place where she had been so foolish. She hated the sight of Pellenor fields as they spread out below the city. They reminded her of her impulsiveness, her rashness. She felt ashamed now, and thought that it would have been better if the Witch King had killed her. The scene played over again in her mind. The horrendous scream and the shrieking wind that filled her ears. The flash of light and the vision of withering black robes. Then the unbearable pain that shot through her arm like a knife. The look in her uncles face as he died, and then the pain closing over her eyes. It seemed all a bad dream. A dream she desperately wanted to escape but she never seemed to be able to wake from. The gardens had put her somewhat at peace, and she wandered alone, humming softly to herself to keep the recollections at bay.

~*~

Faramir pitied her. The poor girl was broken. In body and in spirit. He could tell she had once been strong, determined, a shieldmaided, but now she was passive and meek, and her strong spirit was diminished to a shard of what it once had been. Yet over the last few days, he become aware that he began to feel the pity he felt for her slipping away. It was not that he had hardened his heart, but pity had been replaced by something more profound, a feeling he couldn't quite come to grips with, but understood. He dared not hope that she would ever return this feeling, for she was in still love with Aragorn. He wanted to make her understand that Aragorn loved another, but he knew she was to delicate, and still in a state of shock and denial from the hardships she had been through. He himself was not sure that he was ready to reconcile with his tangled mess of emotions. He needed time, she needed time. That was all. They needed to sort out they're current life before trying to go on, and he knew this. But he felt urged to become closer to her, to offer what comfort and reassurance he could. He wanted to show her love, for it seemed to him that she had never known it.

~*~

So they continued. Mayhap seeing one another at night when preparing for sleep, for they had now been moved to private rooms in the citadel to give up their beds in the houses of healing for those who needed them more. But she avoided him, not daring to try speaking to him again, for she knew she wanted to trust him too much and she would spill all the secrets she had so carefully kept. She still pined for Aragorn, she knew he was to return any day now, and her heart beat quickly at the thought. But then she remembered the fatal blow.

"It is but a shadow and a thought that you love." Tears came to her eyes. She saw the pity in his eyes. She hated it. She did not wish to be pitied, she wished to be loved.

~*~

Faramir grew more restless as the days wore on. He longed to see her. He found himself hoping to catch even a small glimpse of her, he cared not how brief the contact, just so he could see her. He began to inquire about her, not directly, but one day a maid told him that Eowyn often walked in the gardens. He hurried to the garden grounds, and began to search for her, not daring to call her name, but weaving in and out of the numerous trees and hedges. He knew the gardens well, for he had played in them as a boy, and he searched every secret path he knew, but to no avail. When he was nearly ready to give up, he thought he heard something. Stopping he listened. A songbird sang in the ash tree near him, but there was another noise, a sweet song was being murmured. Low and sweet the voice was, gentle, and he knew it at once.

"Let me fly as the sparrow,

Away from this world of night,

Let the dove bring peace to me,

And the skylark bring me light.

Let hope be awakened once again,

And the darkness vanish in light,

And there shall be joy at last ,

For tis the end of the darkest night.

Let no heart be troubled…" but then the song trailed off and the voice was silent. He peeked around the large ash tree and saw her sitting in the grass against the tree, her face despondent and a tear rolling down her cheek.

"You sing well my lady." He said quietly. She jumped up startled, jerked out of her reverie; she fixed him with a burning glare.

"You have no right to sneak up on me like that!"

"I was not sneaking my lady, only walking in the garden and I happened to hear you. Is this not my home?" he murmured. She blushed crimson.

"I am sorry." She said turning from him. He walked up behind her and took her hand. She started and turned to face him.

"Would you walk with me my lady? For I am in need of someone to talk to." He ventured. To his delight, she nodded and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "What do you think of Gondor my lady?" he started the conversation.

"It is very beautiful, but I am not happy here. I long for my open plains of Rohan."

"We all pine for home. There were times when I feared I would never see it again."

"When?"

"I was charged with the duty of recapturing Osgilliath by my father, I was wounded, and I believed for a time that I would die on the field of battle. But luckily I'm still here, and was able to return home."

"May we talk of something else besides battle my lord?"

"Of course. But please my lady, tell me what troubles you."

"It is that which I will never have that troubles me. You know of whom I speak." Her eyes looked far away, staring aimlessly into nothing, and he sighed.

"Eowyn," he said gently, daring to take a chance of using her name, "Lord Aragorn cares a great deal about you, but not in the way you wish. He cares for his friends, and you I am sure are one of his dearest. You are a woman of Valor, and he admires you for that. But his heart was taken long before you knew him."

"You are right." She sighed shakily, then she laughed, a soft laugh, weak and mocking. "What a fool I've been. You are wise my lord. I suppose my fate now is to return to Rohan, marry a rich old prince, and die and no one will remember my name."

"I will remember your name Eowyn. For none who have seen you could forget it."

"Do not mock me my lord."

"I would not mock you Eowyn. I do not mock those I love." And with that he turned sharply on his heel and retreated back to his chamber.


	3. Chapter 3

One who has loved you long…

Eowyn and Faramir met many times after that in the garden. He told her of Boromir, the fall of his father, and of his life. She in her turn described Grima's haunting of her, her uncle's enchantment and the death of her cousin. He marveled at the strength with which she spoke, knowing that he had had much in his life that nearly broke him, and she had more cause for grief, yet she spoke of it with such calmness, as if she had taken it all in stride. He began to piece together her feelings, which was not as difficult as one might think. Her affection of Aragorn had rather destroyed all emotional boundaries she had so carefully put up, and he could tell that she was used to hiding her emotions, and did not realize how openly they were displayed. But he saw as the days wore on, that what she had thought as love for Aragorn was slowly diminishing into naught but friendship and respect for a great leader.

Eowyn herself knew that she was weaker than she once had been, but she felt safe around Faramir. She knew that he was always sincere with her, and would not toy with her emotions as some men might have done. She began to feel herself being drawn into him, and she knew she was beginning to love him. She now realized her fault in the hope that Aragorn loved her, and she saw Faramir, as the noble, caring lord who loved her more than life it's self.

~*~

One afternoon, she was waiting in the garden's for Faramir in their usual spot, underneath the spreading ash tree where he had heard her sing, when a maid suddenly appeared carrying a large, soft bundle.

"Please my Lady, I was requested to give this to you."

"Thank you." Eowyn said, taking the bundle from the maid. She curtsied and vanished back into the houses of healing. Eowyn inspected the curious bundle; it was of a fine deep blue fabric, soft to the touch and very light. The bundle was died with soft cords and she carefully untied them. She shook out the cloth, and she gasped as it fell into a beautiful cloak. Its hem was embroidered with stars made from crystal beads and on the back was the white tree of Gondor, sewn in silver thread. As she smoothed the cloak, a small scroll fell from it. She picked it up, and read,

_To my beloved Eowyn,_

_May your beauty never fade,_

_May your days be long on earth_

_May you find the purest love that life can give_

One who has loved you long…

She glanced around and saw him standing quietly to her right, between two trees. He smiled and she ran to him with her own mouth breaking into a radiant smile, the blue cloak fluttering from her arm. He caught her up in a warm embrace and spun her about, the cloak billowing and waving, enveloping them both.

"Thank you." She said joyfully when he set her down. "It's beautiful."

"It was my mother's. I know she would have wanted you to have it. May I?" He gestured towards the cloak. She nodded and he clasped it around her neck, so it fluttered from her shoulders like a pair of wings. They were both silent, and no words were needed. Her eyes held a beautiful peace and his heart swelled knowing that he had succeeded in his mission. He had healed her spirit. And in the processes he had fallen in love with her. With great tenderness, he drew her into his arms, and kissed her. Not lustfully or hungrily, but sweetly and warmly. She vowed from then on that she would love him forever. All he was, all he had been and all he hoped to be. PLEASE R&R!

AUTHOR'S NOTE

If you read this chapter before: Sorry about the repeat, don't know what happened there...


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